


throwing him a bone

by timetravelingpalmer



Category: DC's Legends of Tomorrow (TV)
Genre: Episode Tag, F/M, angsty is guess???, episode 3x18, i somehow manage to cram angst into everything i write, so its probably there
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-13
Updated: 2018-12-13
Packaged: 2019-09-17 19:24:00
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,205
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16980348
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/timetravelingpalmer/pseuds/timetravelingpalmer
Summary: 'He’s trying to be nice. Throw him a bone', Nora thought.ray is just trying to comfort nora after her father took her place, but she was never the best at accepting gestures of kindness.





	throwing him a bone

**Author's Note:**

> this fic can also be known as WHERE DID NORA GET THE COAT
> 
> big thanks to @MrsNoraPalmer for helping me writing a little bit and to @princesstomaz on tumblr for inspiring me to write it in the first place!!

Ray held her for longer than he had too, long after she had stopped fighting against him. Now Nora sat in a far too uncomfortable chair, on what she assumed had to be the Waverider, letting herself be held, which was something that hasn’t happened in a long time.

 

All because of her dad.

 

He was gone. And this time she was sure he wasn’t ever going to come back.

 

Nora knew he was a bad person, she had figured out that much for herself, but he had been all she had for as long as she could remember. 

 

She had let herself sink into Rays embrace as the tears continued. He rubbed small circles over her back and whispered soft comforts she couldn’t quite make out. She let the words wash over her without any of them sinking in. Nora had long since stopped trying to understand him. She had never done anything but fight against him and his team and yet, this had been the second time he had saved her. He was holding her, comforting her. As if that's something she even deserved anymore. 

 

All throughout her life she had to force herself to keep moving. This was just another one of those times. Mallus was still out there and if she didn’t put a stop to it he would get exactly what he wants. Time would be broken and it would be all her fault. The entire world would have to pay for her mistake she made when she was only thirteen. She had to do something to tip the scales in the right direction for once.

 

She pulled away from Ray, shrugging him off harder than she should. The sense of warmth she didn’t even notice was there in the first place faded away. Being vulnerable, especially in front of him was something that was foreign to her.  

 

“Where are the rest of them?” Nora asked as she rubbed remaining tears from her eyes. Her voice was rougher than she had expected it to be.

 

Ray looked at her, confused. “The Legends? They- they’re in the wild west, fighting. Why?”

 

Nora thought this was obvious. Was he just planning to sit here while Mallus’ reign was about to begin? “Because that's where we’re going.” 

 

She moved to get up, but Ray jumped into action. He stood in front of the chair, blocking her way, and put a gentle hand on her arm. It felt so comforting she wanted to melt back into the seat, to forget this all was happening.  _No_ Nora thought,  _I have to do this._ She shook him off, pulled herself to her feet, using just enough magic to make him stumble out of her path, and strode out of the room. 

 

When Nora entered the hall she realized she had no idea where she was going. She had only ever been on the ship briefly and hadn’t exactly gotten a tour. She didn’t let this bother her, she kept walking. She was on a mission and nothing was going to stop her. She figured that if she walked for long enough she would eventually find her way out of here. 

 

That was her plan anyway. Until the same annoying roadblock stood in her way. 

 

“Move Ray.” She didn’t think she left this open for argument but he decided to anyway.

 

“Nora, please just slow down for a minute.” He pleaded with her. 

 

No part of Nora wanted to wait, she needed to get off this ship as soon as possible. But, something about they way Ray was looking at her, softly, something kind lying in his eyes, that made her stop trying to push back. She could tell he didn’t think she would listen, as his eyes widened in surprise as she assumed a stance with her arms crossed over her chest, trying to hear him out.

 

“Are you sure you want to go  _now_?  I was thinking you could eat something or have some tea. Just to take a breather?”

 

He said it so innocently. Nothing but concern in his voice, even if it was misplaced and at the completely wrong time.

 

It made Nora pull back. No one had ever spoken to her like that, put her first. If it was any other time maybe she might have found it sweet, but now it just left her confused. The fate of time was currently in the hands of Rays less than capable friends and he was worried about making sure she was well fed?

 

Okay, maybe it was really sweet. But, also just as stupid.

 

“Are you kidding me?” Nora meant to have that come out with an edge, something biting, but it just came out with a sense of awe. She mentally shook herself out of it and tried to push the rush of something close to affection down. They had a mission, a timeline to save. 

 

“I just thought that after… what happened…” he said, clearly trying to tiptoe around why she’s here in the first place, why her soul hadn’t been taken over after all.

 

“My dad just died Ray,” Nora said, facing the reality Ray didn’t want her to have to confront. “I’m not going to let what he did be for nothing. He didn’t save me just so I could sit here drinking tea while Mallus takes over.”

 

She saw the irony in what she was saying. Not even a week ago she couldn’t have imagined saying anything close to that. When Nora got herself involved this Mallus, it was to save her dad and help him take what he wanted. Now, when Mallus grew stronger, taking more and more of Nora as the days passed, and the tides turned. 

 

It was obvious Ray was trying to find something to say. He seemed surprised that she was fighting back at all. After seeing her breakdown in his arms, Nora could hardly blame him for thinking she would want to stay behind. Strangely enough, Nora didn’t regret letting her emotions get the best of her. Usually, she would feel weak or ashamed of letting herself fall apart. But somehow Ray made that okay.

 

“I just want to make sure you’re okay.” Ray said it with nothing but sincerity. 

 

Nora gulped. “I’m not.”

 

Rays eyes narrowed, sadness that had lie somewhere deep in his eyes was now written all over his face at her bluntness.

 

“I’m furious. But Mallus doesn’t give a shit about that. He’s not going to wait for me to feel better to take over. He’s striking now and we can’t wait.”

 

“It’s not safe to go out and fight when your this upset Nora. You could do something you’ll regret, get yourself killed.” It was obvious that he was speaking from experience. The fact that he was part of the Legends made this quite easy to believe.

 

“Better me than all of time.” Nora shrugged. Nothing was worth it anymore. The twenty years she spent trying to get this very thing to happen didn’t matter. She was more than willing to risk everything she had left to fight Mallus. Not to claim a better life for herself, because if someway she made it out of this alive there wasn’t a chance in hell there wouldn’t consequences for what he’d done. This was to make up for what she had done. 

 

Ray opened and closed his mouth, debating whether to argue back, probably forming an “of course you matter” speech in his head. 

 

Finally he found his voice again. “Just, come to the kitchen with me. I promise it will only be ten minutes.” His hand hesitantly reached out. 

 

Nora bit her lip. She knew that she shouldn’t, that Mallus was only getting stronger, but something in her told her maybe it wasn’t such a bad idea. She didn’t want to fight Ray anymore. Not just because he’s as stubborn as he is polite or that she was too tired to keep this game of cat and mouse going, but because she wanted to reach  out and take his hand. As she contemplated this he smiled, softly, barley even a hint of the bright one she had seen him wear in Berlin, but it was there, written all over his face. It was there for her. Maybe it was selfish to want to keep that smile for even a few minutes longer, a smile she probably didn’t deserve in the first place, but her gut told her to reach out and grab his hand. 

 

He held her hand gently as he pulled her down the hall. 

 

Even though she was the one who grabbed his hand, her gut reaction was the pull her hand away but she couldn't deny that it was a small comfort that she craved. 

 

When they entered the kitchen, Nora sat at the raised counter as Ray got to work making the tea. “I forgot to even ask, do you want tea? Or would you prefer something else? You like hot chocolate right? Gideon can make anything.”

 

Nora shrugged. “Tea’s fine.” She didn’t like tea unless there was and inch and a half layer of sugar coating the bottom of the mug, but she wasn’t gonna tell him that either. It didn’t feel like her beverage choice mattered.

 

They sat in silence. In a place somewhere in between awkward and comforting . There wasn’t a need to break the silence and Nora wasn’t sure if she wanted to. So she sat, consuming the silence as she wrung her hands together. Her mind should have been running wild but instead it all seemed foggy, like it was drenched in molasses.  

 

“I’m sorry” 

 

The words came out of her mouth before her brain had even noticed she started talking. She isn’t sure why she says it. It must just be the only thing to say.

 

“About?” Ray asks innocently. 

 

Now that really was the million dollar question. Was she sorry for trying to save her dad in the first place? For following his plan and trying to destroy time? For hurting Ray?

 

“I don’t know. It felt like the thing to say. I guess for all of this. What I’ve done.”

 

“You don’t have to apologize.” Ray said simply.

 

Nora scoffed at the thought. Not even an hour ago she was okay with destroying the world so her and her father could rule it. Ray might be the only person on Earth who thinks no one needs an apology, and he’s probably the one that deserves it the most. Why? Nora wasn’t sure yet. “Yes I do Ray. Especially to you of all people.”

 

“Why me?”

 

She should have expected that he would ask that. Ray always seemed to be able to ask the hard questions. Nora didn’t even know herself and even if she did, she had a feeling she certainly wouldn’t want to tell him. 

 

So, she settled on something basic. “I’m not sure. But I have a feeling this is where I’m supposed to start.” 

 

Ray had finished the tea a brought it over to the table, taking his own seat next to her. He turned to face her, allowing the knees on his too long legs to bump the side of her thighs. There was something comforting about it. Something was always comforting when it came to Ray. Even crammed in the back of that stolen car in Berlin with tensions running high, there was something soothing about just simply being near him. 

 

“You were kind to me. I know that you’re a person who deserves apologizes. The other are more take it or leave it, but I need you to know that. That I really am sorry.”

 

Nora wasn’t sure when or how she got up the courage to say that to him but somehow she did. She hadn’t planned it or even thought about how to say it. The thought just passed through her mind and straight out her lips. Nora placed the rim of the mug to her mouth and took a sip of the far too dull tasting tea, just to keep more words from spilling out. Immediately her stomach tightened, scared of how he would react. God, what had become of her? After being possessed for over half her life Nora would hope that she would be practically immune to fear by now, but instead here she was getting butterflies over talking to a boy.

 

_You only called him nice,_ Nora thought.  _It’s not like you asked him to make out._ Her eyes flicked down to his lips.  _ Oh God, don’t think about that either. _

 

“I do. Trust me I do.” He said it with so much finality in his voice, like there wasn’t even a shred of him that would have doubted it.

 

Nora had tried her very best to put up wall over the years. Walls that go up for fifteen miles, made entirely out of barbed wire, complete with a moat filled with hungry sharks. How could Ray be so good at seeing through them? Something about it scared her. Not that she was afraid of Ray by any means, but she had done a good job and keeping everyone else out that it had been a long time since anyone had been able to see in. Anyone else would look at her and see the villain. They would see a person who wasn’t sorry for what they did, just sorry they got caught doing it.  The fact that he saw the real her, or at least what she hoped was the real her, with Mallus it was hard to tell sometimes, made her feel vulnerable. 

 

Vulnerability is something Nora had been running from her whole life. If she showed weakness her dad would hold it over her head, Mallus would pounce and take even more of her soul away. But somehow with Ray, showing the real her, bruises in all, felt safe. It made her feel stronger even, less alone.

 

“Dr. Palmer.” Gideons robotic voice cut in. “It seems as though the battle with Mallus is about to start now. I’d hurry up if you still want to help.”

 

Nora was almost out of her seat by the time the voice stopped talking. 

 

But Ray got up faster. 

 

“Hang on. Stay here for just a second.” 

 

He darted out of the kitchen before Nora could get in a word otherwise. Did he not just hear the talking computer? They had to go and now. 

 

Before Nora had the chance to get too upset at Ray’s obvious lack of priorities, he entered with a jacket in his arms. He held it open for her, allowing her to slip her arms into the sleeves, but Nora just stared at it. 

 

“It’s cold there.” He explained when she didn’t react. 

 

“I don’t need that.” Nora said harshly.

 

Ray’s kindness had exceeded anything Nora had ever experienced before but it was getting to be too much. She had to leave this ship feeling like she had won some kind of battle against him, show him that she was strong, no matter what had happened. that she wasn’t going to turn into some starry eyed school girl just because he made her a cup of tea she barely even touched. He may have gotten her to take a break, to relax and stop fighting, but she wasn’t going to let herself be coddled like this. She had her fun pretending everything was fine for all of fifteen minutes, but now the walls had to come back up. 

 

He just grinned and rolled his eyes playfully. “Nora, its a jacket. Take it. Being warm isn’t going to make you any less of a badass.”

 

Nora sighed, choosing to ignore the implications of what he said. Yet again Ray was able to see over her walls, see that she didn’t want the jacket not because she was already warm, or because it might constrict her when she was fighting, but because of how it made her look. Like she was someone who had to be taken care of. “Really Ray?”

 

“Yep.” He was still holding out the coat, waiting for her to put her arms through the sleeves.

 

“I said I don’t need it. I don’t need you taking care of me. I can take care of myself.” Nora could feel herself getting more and more angry at how stubborn Ray was being.

 

“I know you can. But, I sure would like to help.”

 

Suddenly she couldn’t bring herself to be mad at him anymore. Maybe just a little annoyed at how Ray has now completely foiled her plan of turning her attitude towards him back to forced indifference. It would all be a whole lot easier if Ray made it easy to hate him.

 

“Ray we are kind of on a tight schedule right now.” Nora tried to change the subject back to the impending doom of the world, so she didn’t have to dive into the fact that no one had ever been around to take care of her. Maybe that’s why she was so bad at accepting any sort of kindness from him.

 

“Yes, which is the reason I didn't have time to get you gloves and a hat.”

 

At that Nora smiled, softly, in a way she hoped Ray wouldn’t pick up on.  _He’s trying to be nice. Throw him a bone,_ Nora thought. She wasn’t sure if it was the most or least sane part of her brain.

 

“This is really the hill you're willing to die on, huh?” She asked playfully, testing the waters once more.

 

“Yep,” he said. His face fell for a second. “If you really don’t want-”

 

He was interrupted by Nora turning around and pushing her arms through the sleeves. When she turned back around she grinned at him. 

 

“All done wasting time Palmer?” Nora asked with a coating of snark. 

 

“Not quite,” Ray smiled and said back. 

 

He took a step closer and Nora’s heart sped up. Ray was standing so close Nora’s only thought was,  _Oh my god is he going to kiss me?_ But, suddenly a much louder voice screamed, _WILL YOU GET A HOLD OF YOURSELF._

  
  


When Ray instead looked down, bending down a little to do up the buttons on the coat her heart sank, well it didn’t sink really, more just dipped under the water. Nora would usually pull away and say that she could button up her own damn jacket because she wasn’t a kid. But instead, that same annoying voice chimed back in,  _Now that he’s hunched over like that you could kiss him._

  
  


She shook the thought out of her head as Ray finished, standing at normal height again. “Okay, now we are ready.”

 

Nora followed closely behind him and took a deep breath. She wasn’t sure if she was ready for this but she was going to have to be. This will be her only chance to destroy the monster that plagued her since childhood. She had jumped teams and was finally fighting to save herself.  After this things might be okay, hopefully anyways. There was something in Ray’s eyes that made her believe whatever was ahead couldn’t be too bad

**Author's Note:**

> if you liked it please comment :)))


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